Disney’s board of directors violated company’s rules when it hired Michael Ovitz as president without holding a meeting to discuss the move, a corporate-governance expert told a Delaware court yesterday.

Deborah DeMott, a Duke University law professor, said Disney directors ignored common practice in most boardrooms and violated company bylaws when they hired Ovitz without first holding a meeting to talk it over.

Neither Ovitz nor Disney CEO Michael Eisner – the two men at the center of the drama – made an appearance on the opening day of what promises to be one of the most-watched legal showdowns in Hollywood.

Instead, DeMott was the first witness called in the case that pits shareholders against Disney’s board, which investors claim let former Hollywood power broker Ovitz walk away with a $140 million severance package when he flopped as president of the entertainment giant.

Both are expected to take the stand early next week.

The board’s failure to review Ovitz’s fitness for the job or employment contract prior to hiring him fell far short of good corporate-governance practices, DeMott testified.

“I saw no evidence that the choice of Mr. Ovitz was preceded by a meeting of the Disney’s board of directors,” she told Chancellor William Chandler, who will rule on the case.

The suit claims Disney directors failed to act in the best interests of shareholders when they approved hiring Ovitz – a close friend of Eisner – as the company’s president, then gave him a generous going-away gift after just 15 months on the job.

In response to DeMott’s testimony, an attorney for the Disney director defendants argued they had one-on-one conversations with Eisner and each other that allowed them to reach a decision without formally meeting.

DeMott also testified that directors violated company bylaws that require the board to meet and discuss “significant matters,” such as the hiring of a top executive, DeMott testified.

Those same bylaws also make clear that the board’s compensation committee is responsible for determining pay for the president, she said. Ovitz’s appointment was crucial considering it came at a time when the company was seeking to add depth to its management ranks and anoint an eventual successor to Eisner, she said.

The 18 director defendants have been called to testify during the four-week trial.

The setting for the trial is tiny Georgetown, Del. – a long way from Tinseltown. But lawyers for both sides are planning to trot out Hollywood heavy hitters, corporate execs and political figures such as former Sen. George Mitchell and actor Sidney Poitier.